Cotton stalk cutter with rotary cutting reels



Nov. 7, 1950 c. R. sLATER 2,529,358

COTTON STALK CUTTER WITH ROTARY CUTTING REELS ana/Wawy Us Nov. 7, 1950 l c. R. sLATER 2,529,358

COTTON STALK CUTTER WITH ROTARY CUTTING REELS Filed Jan. 14, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 t IllllllljDHlllmQlllll Inventor n Clarence R. Slater By mwn.

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Nov. 7, 1950 c. R. sLATER coTToN sTALx CUTTER WITH ROTARY CUTTING REELs Filed Jan. 14, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Inventor Clarence R. Slater Patented Nov. 7, 1950 'COTTON STALK CUTTER WITH ROTARY CUTTING REELS Clarence R. Slater, Lewisville, Tex., assignor of forty-nine per cent to John W. Slater, Lewisville, Tex.

Application January 14, 1947, Serial No. 721,928

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to two-row cotton stalk cutters of the type which are adapted to travel along the rows, and which include a plurality of spaced rotary cutting reels.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved cotton stalk cutter of the above type which is adapted to be drawn by a tractor, and which is adapted to have the cutting reels thereof driven by the power take-off shaft of said tractor.

Another object of the invention is to provide pendulum weighting elements for the machine which are suspended within the cutting reels so as to clear the blades of trash.

A further object is to provide means whereby the cutting reels may only be driven in one direction.

Still another object is to provide means for vertically adjusting the frame and the cutting reels of the machine relative to the ground wheels and their axles, so as to set the reels for cutting the stalks at the desired distance above the ground surface.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a cotton stalk cutter of the above kind which is comparatively simple and durable in construction, highly efficient in operation, and otherwise well adapted to meet with the requirements for successful commercial use.

The exact nature of the present invention, as well as more specic objects and features thereof, will become apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational View of a cotton stalk cutter constructed in accordance with the present invention and showing the same as it appears in use;

Figure 2 is a transverse section taken on line 2-2 of Figure l, with the reel cover partly broken away and in section;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 3 3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical longitudinal section taken on line fI-l of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the hub and adjacent parts of one of the cutting reels; and,

Figure 6 is an exploded perspective View drawn on an enlarged scale and showing details of the means for securing vertical adjustment of the chassis frame of the machine relative to the ground wheel axles.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the pres-- ent cotton stalk cutter includes a horizontal rec-v tol tangular chassis frame 5 composed of a front rail' 5, a rear rail l, and side rails 8. Midway between the side rails 8, the front rail B and the rear rail 'I are connected by a pair of spaced longitudinal v bars 9 which project forwardly beyond the frontA rail G and terminate in forwardly converg-ing front ends Iii that areconnected by gusset plate II.- A tongue I2 is attached to the forward ends of bars 9 and to gusset plate I I to facilitate coupling of the machine to the tractor drawbar indicated by dotted lines at I3 in Figure 1.

Mounted in the rear portion of chassis frame 5 is a second vertical frame composed of uprights I 4 which are attached at I5 and intermediate their ends to th'e side rails 8, and which are connected at their upper ends by a top connecting member I6. At their lower ends, the uprights I4 are connected by a transverse stationary cutter blade I1 which may be similar to the stationary cutter blade commonly employed on an ordinary lawn mower of the rotary cutting reel type. Each side rail 8 is perferably connected to the nearest longitudinal bar 9 by a cross bar I8 which is located forwardly of a rotary cutting reel I9. At points between and at its ends, the stationary cutter' blade II is braced against longitudinal strains by means of inclined braces 2l! attachedat their rear lower ends to the blade I'I and at their for- Ward upper ends to the side rails 8 and longitur dinal bars S. The lower end portions of the uprights I4 are widened and have the stub axles 2| may be secured. Y

Journaled transversely of the rear porti-on of frame 5 in bearings 2l secured upon the side frame rails 8, is a shaft 23 on which the cutting' reels I9 are mounted, said reels being adapted to beA driven with shaft v28 and capable of limited lateral movement thereon.. Each reel is located inthe space between Yalongitudinal bar 9 and; the adjacent side rail 8'and betweenY the cross, barIB andthe rear frame rail 1. Journaled in'` Also, the uprights I4 have two vertical series of holes 26 for selective recep- Y tion of the bolts 25 whereby the relative adjust- Ament between the axle 2| and the uprights I4 bearings 29 upon and spanning the space between the longitudinal bars 9 is a gear casing 29 through which the shaft 28 extends, a bevel gear 30 being secured on the shaft 28 within the casing 29 and meshing with a second bevel gear 3| secured on the rear end of a countershaft 32 that extends forwardly from the casing 29 and includes sections jointed at 33 by means of a universal joint. A stub shaft 34 is coupled to the forward end of shaft 32 by a universal joint 35 and is adapted to be connected or coupled to the power take-off shaft 36 of the tractor for being driven thereby. By this means, power is transmitted from the power take-off shaft of the tractor to the cutting reels i9 for driving the latter in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 1 and as indicated by the arrows in said figure. The forward portion of the rear section of shaft 32 is journaled in a bearing 36 Which is mounted at 36a for Vertical adjustment so as to facilitate proper connection of shaft 32 to tractor power take-01T shafts located at different heights.

Each cutting reel I9 comprises pairs of oppositely projecting spokes each composed of two bars 3'! bolted together at 3B and formed intermediate their ends with mating corrugations 39 which receive and are secured to an end portion of a tubular hub 40, the outer ends of the spokes being connected by transverse cutter blades 4|. The hubs 40 of the reels I9 are slidably mounted on the shaft 28 as previously indicated. The outer end of each reel hub 49 is formed with ratchet teeth 42 for cooperating with the ratchetV teethof a collar 43 secured on the adjacent end portion of shaft 28. The teeth 42 of the hub of each cutting reel are yeldingly engaged with the teeth of the associated collar 43 by means of a helical compression spring 44 which urges the reel toward said collar 43 and is placed on the shaft 28 between the inner end of` each reel hub Miand gear casing 29. In other words, a spring 44 yieldingly shifts each cutting reel laterally outwardly to engage the teeth 42 with those of the collar 43. The arrangement is such that power is transmitted from shaft 28 to each cutting reel so` as to drive the latter only in the direction of the arrows in Figure l, the ratchetdriving connections permitting the reels to remain still or idle in case the shaft 28 is driven in an opposite direction. This permits manual turning of the reels in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in Figure l in case plants vshould become entangled in the cutting reel or an obstacle should become lodged 1between a blade of either cutting reel and the stationary blade l1.

A convex segmento-cylindrical cover or guard canopy 44' is provided over the cutting reels, and thisl cover or canopy is supported by means of longitudinally arranged bows 45 attached to the cross bar I8 and the rear rail 'l of the frame 5.

The plants to be cut are effectively guided to the respective cutting reels by means of a pair of spaced gathering plates 45 mounted in front of each reel andl having forwardly diverging ends. These gathering plates are vertically supported in spaced relation by means of suitable attaching brackets 46 which are secured to the frame 5 at their upper ends and to the gathering plates 45' at their lower ends.

Pendulum weighting and blade clearing elements are freely suspended within the cutting reels as at 46', one of said elements being arranged within each reel. As shown, each weighting `element comprises a pair of hangers 41 loosely embracing the hub 4U of the associated reel at their upper ends and connected at their lower ends by a transversely disposed elongated weight bar 49. Each hanger 4l preferably consists of a pair of bars 49 bolted together at 59 to form a co1- lar loosely embracing the associated reel hub 4U, one bar 49 being longer than the other and attached at its lower end to an end of the associated weighting bar 48. Obviously, by placing additional weighting bars upon and securing the same to the weighting bars 48, the weight of the rear portion of the machine may be increased, the purpose being to provide means to prevent vertical jiggering of the rear end of the machine due to riding over obstructions and irregularities in the ground surface.

ln order to cut leaning stalks, supplemental radial blades 5l are flatly secured to the outer sides of the outer portions of the reel spokes.

In practice, the machine is coupled to the drawbar of the tractor as shown in Figure 1, and stub shaft 34 is coupled to the power take-01T 36 of the tractor. As the machine travels ahead, power is transmitted to the shaft 32 for driving the cutting reels in the direction of the arrows of Figure 1. As the cutting reels rotate, the

l blades 4l thereof intermittently coact with the stationary cutter blade Il for cutting the stalks off adjacent the ground.

From the foregoing description, it is believed that the construction, operation and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art. Modifications and changes in details of construction are contemplated, such as fairly fall within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What I claim is:

l. A cotton stalk cutter comprising a frame having wheels, a shaft journalled on said frame, means for driving said shaft, a cutting reel rotatably mounted on said shaft, a stationary cutter blade, means fastening said stationary cutter blade to said frame beneath said cutting reel,

said stationary blade coacting with the blades of said cutting reel, a blade clearing element and means rotatably mounting said blade clearw ing element about said shaft inside said reel.

2. A double row cotton stalk cutter comprising a frame having wheels attached thereto, a shaft journalled on said frame, means for driving said shaft, a pair of spaced rotary cutting reels rotatably mounted on said shaft within said frame, depending uprights fastened to and projecting below said frame, a stationary cutter blade secured to and extending between said uprights, said stationary cutter blade being disposed beneath said cutting reels, said stationary blade coacting with the blades of the cutting reels, blade clearing elements, and means mounting said blade clearing elements about said shaft inside said cutting reels.

3. A cotton stalk cutter comprising a frame having wheels secured thereto, a shaft journalled on said frame, means for driving said shaft, a butting reel journalled on said shaft within the frame, driving connections between said shaft and the hubs of said reel, a stationary cutter blade, means fastening said stationary cutter blade to said frame beneath said cutting reel, said stationary cutter blade coacting with the blades of said cutting reel, a blade clearing element, and means rotatably mounting said blade clearing element about said Shaft inside said reel, said. last recited means including a pair of. hangers each comprising a pair of bars secured to each other forming collars, said collars loosely embracing said hubs.

4. A double row cotton stalk cutter comprising i a frame having wheels attached thereto, a shaft journalled on said frame, means for driving said shaft, a pair of spaced rotary cutting reels rotatably mounted on said shaft within said frame, depending unrights fastened to and projecting below said frame, a stationary cutter blade secured to and extending between said uprights, said stationary cutter blade being disposed beneath said cutting reels, said stationary blade coacting with the blades of the cutting reels, blade clearing elements, and means mounting said blade clearing elements about said shaft inside said cutting reels, said last recited means comprising a pair of hangers for each of said blade clearing elements, said hangers each comprising bars secured to each other forming collars, said collars being secured in a loosely ernbracing relationship with the hubs of said reels.

CLARENCE R. SLATER.

6 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

